UK games developers to get tax breaks

The chancellor of the exchequer, Alistair Darling, has offered tax breaks to video games developers in an attempt to encourage the burgeoning industry in Britain.

Darling said that the "creative industries, including the video games industry, make a valuable economic and cultural contribution to the UK", and added that a tax credit system will be on offer, similar to the one offered to the British film industry. It'll make it cheaper to build games in Britain.

The budget read: The Government announces that, following consultation on design, it will introduce a tax relief for the UK's video games industry, subject to state aid approval from the European Commission".

Many gamers will welcome the move, as it indicates a positive outlook on video games from the government. The artform received a savaging recently from Alan Titchmarsh, prompting journalist Charlie Brooker to respond: "Which is less civilised? Some gunplay in pixel-land, or an unfair one-sided censorship debate before a mooing audience in reality?"